The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1887-03-11
LIVING 100 YEARS.
An Inquiry Into the Art of Lon
gevity.
Many Theories Among Psychologists
Rules VIII Not Always Protect, but
Excess of Misrule is Sure to
Shorten Life.

The late death of Mrs. Margaret De-
laney at nearly 101 years of age, in
Brooklyn, few days ago, suggests the
often debated but always interesting
question of the normal duration of
human life. Button and some other
authorities on animal life have said
that the life of every animal should last
five or six times as long as the period
of its growth. The ratio generally
accepted is five. Thus, man takes
twenty years to grow in and should
therefore live to 100. With proper
care, however, and regular habits as to
sleep and diet, many scientists see no
reason why at least half a century more
might not be added to the healthy
iver's century. Heller placed the limit
at a little short of 200 years. Old Parr
is credited with having lived to the ace
of 1872. There is often great difficulty
in ascertaining the eXactag If the fire.
quent reports of the death ages of very
old colored persons who in early life
had been slaves be reliable it would
seem as if that race were longer lived
than our own. If history be exact in
its statements of longevity the duration
of life varies according to the lapse of
ages as well us civilization and climate.
An old Egyptian monument states that
ll0w the limit in that country. Some
of the Old Testament estimates are hard
to credit. Methuselah, for instance,
must have had the toughest sort of a
constitution. Abraham was content
with 165 years. Joseph filed exactly
the Egyptian estimate. The Nine
tieth Psalm, which is attributed to
Moses, gives 20 as the limit of vital
energy.
The differences in the views even of
physicians rs to the best means of
keeping the clockwork of life going are
almost as great rs the original differ
ence in the timcpieces themselves.
Some people think it necessary TO eat
three or four meals day in order to
keep their lives agoing, while others
declare that the chief destroyer of life
and health is food itself When a sleek,
well fed man called on Abernethy and
complained ola general break up in his
health, the quaint old Esculapius said:
"Givo up your dinners; live on sixpence
a day and earn it." The ancients
were generally content with two square
meals day, the praHdi1t1n and'the cana,
and many modern philosophers have
found that they feel much lighter
and more comfortable when they
cat only twice in the twenty
four hours. Others, on the contrary,
both physicians and laymen, whenever
they see a person in weak health recon-
mend more food, and when the dys-
peptic answers that tough beef does
not ''sit easy on his bOSom's lord, -
the stomach-entreat him or her to take
moro nourishmcnt, such as Jelly every
five minutes, beef tea every half hour,
oysters before going to bed and port
wine whenever faint feeling come
upon them. One man thinks boxing
will keep him strong, another, rowing;
"a third, walking SO many miles every
day without any object; fourth, going
70 bed at a particular hour every night;
fifth, oatmeal every morning; sixth,
bathing every day, and so forth.
Physical exercise is. no doubt, one of
the greatest personalities of life and
health, but when ove;Jlone it has killed
thousands Of strong men bY heart
disease, consumption, apoplexy or par
alysis. Mr.. Gladstone has recruited his
strength for many years by telling trees
and his diet is very simple. a little fish,
some bread and cheese and half pint
OF bitter ale often serving him for a
dinner at his club after hard davis
work Other brain workers, like Arch
bishop Whately. have had enormous
appetites and been equal to three ordi-
nary men at dinner table. Pure air
and pure water have great deal TO do
with longevity, so much SO that in the
lake districts of Wcstmorelad, Eng
land. the average age Of those who